Gov. announces statewide veteran cemetery plan

Gov. Martinez: 'It's important to us that our veterans ... have a resting place'

New Mexico’s size can make it hard for the families of deceased veterans to pay their respects. That’s why a new plan is being rolled out to set up cemeteries for veterans from the state’s rural areas.

Gov. announces statewide veteran cemetery plan

Gov. Martinez: 'It's important to us that our veterans ... have a resting place'

New Mexico’s size can make it hard for the families of deceased veterans to pay their respects. That’s why a new plan is being rolled out to set up cemeteries for veterans from the state’s rural areas.

“It's important to us that our veterans and our families have a resting place that is close to home,” she said.

Currently federal cemeteries are at Santa Fe, Fort Bayard and Fort Bliss. The Santa Fe National Cemetery is expected to be at capacity within 15 years.

Rules say a minimum of 100,000 veterans must live within a 75-mile radius of any proposed national cemetery sites. The work-around is to have the legislature approve the 10 percent start-up money for smaller cemeteries which would be 3-4 acres in size.

Then a special veterans affairs grant would get most of that money back.

“We're trying to make smaller cemeteries that meet national standards, so they will look just like the one in Santa Fe and in Fort Baird,” said Martinez.

After several meetings statewide, to identify the need and ability to fill it, the plan will work toward placing new cemeteries at Angel Fire, Carlsbad, Fort Station and Gallup.

Additional veterans’ cemeteries could be established in other communities in later phases of the project.